


Kittens

by liionne



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-31
Updated: 2013-05-31
Packaged: 2017-12-13 14:13:17
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/825215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/liionne/pseuds/liionne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jehan's stray has babies, and Enjolras gets attached.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Kittens

**Author's Note:**

> So this wasn't my idea - it was actually inspired by some goings on in a roleplay I'm part of. I just had to write it, though. It was too cute to resist.

Jehan had a habit of adopting things. Plants were a biggy. His "guerrilla gardening" was getting way out of hand, and he would sometimes take a clipping here or there if he saw fit. Cats wre high on the list, too. Especially those who seemed like they were in need - the scabby ones with one ear and a droopy belly that made Joly scream in disgust and refuse to enter the house for weeks on end.

One particular cat he had adopted wasn't too scabby looking, but she was very, very pregnant looking. Jehan couldn't  decide if she was just going to have a big litter or if she was going to go into labour soon. The answer might have been both, because she was very large. Very large indeed.

He read every book in the library on kittens and birthing them, and decided in the end that, with a little help from Courfeyrac, and maybe Musichetta, he probably wouldn't need to take her to the vets. She could have a happy little childbirth at home in the basket under the disused kitchen table, where she would be warm and well fed, and maybe even given a saucer of milk (even though Combeferre told him that that probably wasn't very good).

Jehan didn't know when they would be coming. But he found one night in mid-May, when the air was fairly still and the sky was fairly clear, he simply couldn't sleep. Courfeyrac dozed beside him, but Jehan just couldn't. He tossed and he  turned, strands of loose blond hair falling into his eyes. He groaned a little, and sat up, planting warm feet on cold floor. He padded along to the kitchen to get a glass of water, which would hopefully settle him. And then he noticed the cat under the table.

Three kittens, all completely different in looks, were squirming around the bed. The cat, who lay along one side of the bed, didn't seem any smaller for her efforts. Jehan wondered if he had a sixth sense. He then forgot about that to inspect the kittens.

He sat cross legged on the floor, and set about making sure everything was fine. He had left the heating on in the  apartment for the past few days, and even though it had cost him a bomb it was worth it. He checked the thermometer he had taped on the table leg, and found it to read 30 degrees Celsius. Just warm enough. He made sure the cat had water, and found that to be fine, too. He picked each kitten up one by one; they were nearly hairless, gangly looking things, but they were cute. The first had a tabby pattern, and seemed to be fine. It mewled slightly when Jehan picked it up. He set it back down, grabbed a piece of paper and a blue pencil, and wrote, 'Boys: I'. The middle kitten had dark fur, almost black. It didn't make a sound, but kicked its legs furiously. Jehan smiled, and set it down exactly where it had been. He added to his list, 'Boys: I - Girls: I'. After inspecting the other, ginger kitten, Jehan scribbled another line next to the girls column.

He stayed up all night, watching, waiting, and then scribbling down what each kitten was. He recalled from somewhere that a litter usually consisted of two to five kittens. His cat had eight. He just hoped they were going to be alright.

When Courfeyrac woke up in the morning, he found Jehan's side of the bed empty. He frowned, and ran his hand over the space. It was cold. Freezing cold. He got out of bed faster than he usually would have, and padded into the kitchen to find Jehan sat almost under the table.

"She had them?" Coufeyrac murmured sleepily.

Jehan was still wide awake. He nodded excitedly. "Look!" He smiled in a whisper.

Courfeyrac looked. Eight little kittens, with closed eyes and opened mouths, scrambled around trying to get to a teat. They pushed each other over, stood on each other, and fell. A lot.

Courfeyrac smiled slightly. They were cute. "Reminds me of Les Amis." He said, before turning to go and put the kettle on.

~~~~~

The kittens had been viewed by everyone within the first week of their birth. It was decided that one would be going to Cosette, one to Eponine, and one to Musichetta, although she wouldn't be able to take it home because Joly thought he might be allergic; her kitten was going to live with its mother, but it would be hers all the same.

A year or so before, Courfeyrac had booked a holiday for himself and Jehan. They were going to go to London for a few  days, because neither of them had ever been and both of them wanted to. Courfeyrac had wanted to cancel, but Jehan told him no. They would go. They would just have to get a kitten-sitter.

"I would love to," 'Chetta told him. "But Joly-"

Jehan nodded understandingly. Grantaire, who had a little ginger kitten stood in the palm of his hand, said, "I'll do it."

"You will?" Courfeyrac asked, sounding surprised, with a kitten hanging from his shoulder.

Grantaire nodded. "Sure. They can come and live with me for a few days."

"A change of scenery will be good for their development." Jehan nodded happily.

"Will Enjolras be okay with it?" Musichetta frowned.

R shrugged. " _He_ lives with _me,_ remember. I'll do what I want."

Courfeyrac grinned. Jehan smiled. "Alright." He said. And so it was agreed. Grantaire would be kitten-sitter.

Before they left, Grantaire was given a set of strict instructions by Jehan. He was to be sober at all times. He was to make sure the apartment was at a minimum of 27 degrees at all time. He was to removed anything sharp or harmful to the kittens from the apartment, and he was to block up all small, dark spaces. And most importantly, he was not to leave the kittens unattended for more than 30 minutes at a time. 30 minutes was usually the amount of time it took for a kitten to get in serious trouble.

Jehan gave them each a kiss, patted the cat on the head, and then left them with Grantaire, scooting into Courfeyrac's car and waving until they were round the corner. And then Grantaire, remembering the 27 degrees rule, took them inside.

~~~~~

Grantaire had went to the store for a bottle of milk. It was nearly ten o'clock, it was raining, and it was cold, and the bag split on the way home. He was extremely aware of the time. He had been gone 16 minutes, and it was about to turn 17. He had to get home.

He fumbled with cold fingers for the key to his apartment, but found the door suspiciously unlocked. He hoped the kittens were okay. He entered as quickly as he could, pulling off his coat as he stepped inside the wall of heat that was his  apartment. And then he saw Enjolras.

"What's this, R?" He asked. He was sat on the sofa, on the cushion on the left, and he was covered in kittens. He musn't have noticed the basket by the side of the sofa, and when he had sat down in a cloud of new, unknown smells, the kittens had decided it was time to explore. There were a few scattered around his lap, one climbing up his trouser leg, another up his jacket sleeve, and one on his shoulder. The other two were on the floor with their mother, who looked on lazily.

"Kittens." R said.

Enjolras rolled his eyes. "Yes, I can see that." He said. "But why?"

"Jehan's on holiday. I'm kitten-sitting." Grantaire shrugged.

"Why are they on me. I'm not sure I even know how they got here. They're attacking me R. Help." Enjolras flinched as the one on his shoulder began to suck on his earlobe. "You have to get them off."

Grantaire tried to hide his smile. "Why, love?" He asked. "They look pretty happy."

"Their claws are sharp. And they're covering me in hair. Why isn't their mum doing anything? Surely she should be doing something."

"She is." Grantaire nodded. "She's watching her kids on the climbing frame."

Grantaire became unable, then, to hold back his smile. Enjolras grimaced at him. "Just get them off, R. For the love of God."

R rolled his eyes, but did as he was told. He placed the two kittens on the floor in their bed, and then the three that were sat quite happily in Enjolras's lap. He then unattached the one climbing up his leg, and put it with his siblings. Next went the one climbing up his shirt. And finally, the one sucking Enjolras's ear.

"Erm, actually, you can leave that one." Enjolras said.

Grantaire narrowed his eyes with a small, knowing smile. This was it. Enjolras had got attached.

When Jehan and Courf got back, their first port of call was R's apartment for the kittens. "How were they?" Jehan asked,  like a worried mother.

"Absolutely fine." Grantaire smiled. He leaned towards Jehan and said in a low tone, "Enjolras got attached."

Jehan smiled the same smile R had a few days ago. "Which one?" He asked.

"The little white one with the ginger chin." Grantaire nodded.

Jehan smiled and said, quite casually, but loud enough for Enjolras to hear, "I don't know what we're going to do with the kittens, Courf. We really can't keep them all. And seeing as Grantaire doesn't want one..."

Courfeyrac caught on quickly. "I suppose we'll have to give them to a shelter..." He said loudly.

Enjolras took a few steps forward. "I'll take one. If it'll save him from a shelter."

Jehan smiled at Courfeyrac. "Oh?" he asked, faking surprise. "Really?"

Enjolras nodded. "Um, yeah." He said.

Courfeyrac smirked. "Let me guess," He said. "This one?" He pointed to the kitten that had been sucking on Enjolras's ear not only a few nights ago, but early that morning.

Enjolras shrugged, but it was obvious he wanted that one. He watched as Courfeyrac and Jehan drove away. "I knew you'd get attached to one." Grantaire smirked as he went inside, following behind Enj.

Enjolras sighed. "I always get attached to the wrong things." He replied, giving a pointed glance to his boyfriend, who laughed, and shut the door behind them.


End file.
